Many apologies for the lateness in this post, unfortunately I was too tired to type it last night after an active day in the kitchen.
I have often been asked how I make gravy for this or for that meal. In truth it is similar but very different every time I make, as I take advantage of what is around me and I use very much what I have to hand. One thing I do all the time though when making gravies, soups, stews well anything cooking wise is that I am constantly tasting the gravy in particular all the time as for me the flavour of the gravy makes or breaks a meal.
First, after many years of home cooking, trials and tribulations - yes, I have burnt the potatoes (because I was distracted doing something else), and sometimes yes, I have been able to save them. I am not perfect; I am however very human. Some days are good on the cooking front, but if I am unwell then it tends to come out in the cooking usually quite drastically. I am no expert, but I do love cooking.
I think I am more an instinctual cook in that I was taught to observe what the food was actually doing which can be an indicator as to where you are with the cooking process. That kind of skill has to be shown and then practiced. It can however be worked on, but it does need full attention to the task in hand to utilise the skills, and the concentration to see things through to the end no matter what the result. If things do not work out, then that teaches just as much as a good result does, it is not a failure just a Work in Progress!
Now back to gravy. The description below sort of gives a guideline of what I do when I make gravy and how I approach a couple of different types of meat. Sorry if I am a bit long winded but rather too much information than too little.
There is no right or wrong way of making gravy. There are several different ways and they all work. The aim though is a flavourful gravy that complements what you have made.
Ideally one should be making your own stocks and then pressure canning them. That being said, we do not live in a perfect and ideal world. A world without grey would be positively boring!
This is my preferred method to make gravy, utilising any bones from chicken, beef and ham to make a base stock flavoured with onion, carrot, a little celery, white pepper, a couple of cloves, a couple of bay leaves. I often cook a ham hock or ham in this way, as you get extra flavour from the ham for the stock, but also getting the ham, for sarnies during the week. This stock can be kept in the fridge, frozen and pressure canned for long term storage (not pressure cooked).
The way I was taught to make gravy.
You utilise any meat juices, vegetable juices from cooking. For instance, when cooking the roast Pork, the other day, I put the roasting joint on high to get a nice crispy skin, and then added a couple of blocks of lard to get "pork dripping" for roast potatoes for the next coming weeks. After the meat is near or less cooked, I then drain off that fat and pop it into jars to be stored in the fridge with lids being added. In the bottom of the pan there should be the brown meat juices from the meat, with a little fat left. This is the basis for my gravy and where a lot of the flavour is. I then add to this a little water or stock to start with from the veggies I blanched for the roasties (potatoes and parsnips). I then add in a stock pot usually beef but sometimes chicken. This time I used beef. I then added in Marigold Stock Powder a vegetable powder, a teaspoon of homemade green powder, lots of white pepper (not black it is more subtle), a couple of bay leaves and some Bisto stock powder (beef again), some mixed herbs or Herbes de Provence, a tablespoon of Cranberry jelly or Redcurrant jelly, (even Bramble or Apple jelly can be used) and sometimes some white vinegar. This last item is added if the "gravy" is not quite as tasty as I would like. It gives a sour element, which cooks through and is good if the gravy is too bland. I have found that from joint-to-joint flavour changes quite a bit. This is all stirred together with the initial water, to get it gently bubbling. Add more water or vegetable water o or indeed stock once this has thickened up a bit. I constantly taste with a teaspoon to make sure that each addition is adding to the flavour of the gravy. When I have got the gravy where I want it, I then sometimes add in a little Nutritional yeast (it has a cheesy flavour, but I find a little does give a bit of flavour to the gravy). I do not add this all the time. I then thicken up the gravy. I use either some Arrowroot as the thickener or Cornflour which have had a little water added to them to make a liquid (this is called slaking) and then added to the gravy and mixed in well and then brought to the boil. For the Pork I did a thicker gravy so you can make this as thin or as thick as you wish). Gravy is all about layering flavours at the end of the day.
For gravy for stews, before cooking the meat I add in a little chopped onion, celery and carrot cut finely. This is gently fried and then the meat which has been floured, is then fried off in it. I also add in a lot of Worcester Sauce. I then more or less do as above, but I do add in more vegetables to the stew as I go along.
For a purely onion gravy, I fry off a load of onions until caramelised. I then add all of the above ingredients and draw together as above. I have found that with this the flavour develops a bit more if you let the gravy cool down and then warm it up again a bit later.
Obviously, you suit the herbs you do use to the meats you are cooking, i.e., Rosemary and Mint with Lamb.
When I cook a Leg of Lamb, I stud the Lamb with garlic and fresh Rosemary and roast it. The flavour is imbued into the fat and flesh of the meat and really gives a depth of flavour. I by preference use a dollop of mint jelly in the gravy by choice, but if a certain Jack Russell is getting a treat, I do not add this to the gravy as she does not like it. However, for me it does give a bit of a zing to the gravy and really complements the flavour. You do not need much.
For a celebration like Christmas, it is well worth making gravy in advance of Christmas day by roasting in the oven, carrots, onion, garlic, celery. You can also add in a little swede, a little parsnip and a little potato as well. Once caramelised and golden brown the roasties can then be pushed through a sieve or food mill to get rid of all the lumps and so that you end up with a food puree. It is time consuming, but it does make the most flavourful gravy base, which is why I say to process it in advance and freeze it. You can then add your own homemade stock from chicken, beef or ham and then flavour with some or all of the additions have mentioned above. If you make your own stock by pressure "canning" it, and storing on the Pantry shelf, you can always use stock in preference to water. I just try and get as much flavour as I possibly can into my cooking using what is available to me. Veggie peelings can be collected up during the week and kept in a bag in the fridge or freezer, and then used to make base veggie stocks as well.
I would also mention that lots of bought in stocks, powders, etc have lots of salt in them. As a result, I do not add salt to my gravies. Especially if I am using some of Pam Corbin's Souper Mix in the gravy as this is a salt preserve. Sometimes you get too much salt in the gravy, if you add in some raw potato and let it cook for a little while it should draw out some of the salt. You then toss the potato. Plain unsalted potato can also be added to dishes to thicken up a gravy as well.
There is no rhyme or reason to making gravy. Just using what you have to hand and you being happy with the taste and end result. There is still a lot of goodness in things like veggie peelings which are often tossed away, so why not make use of them especially when things are so expensive. You can indeed make stock up like this and short term keep it in jars in the fridge. There is often a thin layer of fat on the top of this, but this can be used in the gravy.
When I was taught to make gravy by my Mum, God bless her, she always used "Burdalls" Gravy browning which was a block gravy browning which you just broke a bit off from the tub and added to your gravy. That really did give a good result, but I do not think it is made anymore more's the pity.
Mum always used to say that it was the gravy that makes a meal and I tend to agree with that. Mum is also the reason why I use white pepper rather than black pepper. Far more subtle and flavourful, oh and a couple of dried Bay leaves added, just do not forget to fish them out before you serve the gravy.
At the end of the day, as with most cooking, you explore your ingredients, their flavours, what you can do with them. When I first learned to be a housewife and cooking meals every day when I got married, the general advice that went out, was learn a dish at a time and learn to cook that dish well. Once that is achieved you can then go onto the next recipe and do the same. Surely and slowly, you build up a repertoire and things that you know work for you and yours. There is no such word as "normal" it comes down to what you and your family like and the right recipes.
Oh, and best not to tell people who do not like herbs or any other ingredients that there are any in the gravy. OH always says that he does not like them. They always go in as they give the flavour to the gravy. However, he happily gobbles it up without fail and without complaint! Just do not tell. That is your little secret!
Hope this helps.
Catch you soon.
Pattypan
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